I don't consider myself an athlete. I realize I run, but as I've mentioned before, I barely consider myself a "runner". Perception can be very different from the outside.
I played stickball in my yard as a kid. I played little league football in a school league every year that I was eligible. I played little league baseball for one year. That was enough. I stopped with football in 10th grade and I did no other sports in high school. The first time I ever ran for exercise was my freshman year of college. I did not enjoy team sports or getting my head smashed by people much larger than me. I was an art kid.
I mention this because yesterday I ran my second half marathon at age 50. I still can't believe I'm 50. As I said, in my freshman year of college, I decided to run a few times. This was nothing regular, just a mile or two when I felt unhealthy. Running made me feel better. My second and third year of college was about the same and it wasn't until my senior year that I starting actually running. My roommate Stan and I started running 5 miles every weeknight. It was cool.
After graduation I ran much less regularly, but I still enjoyed it. After packing on a few pounds of insulation in my young adulthood, I finally decided to get in shape by signing up for my first 5K race, a decision that terrified me. It was December and very cold and I knew nothing about how to dress, how to prepare or even how to run a 5K. I just signed up and ran in shorts and a short sleeve shirt. My first 5K time was 30 minutes. I didn't know if that was good or bad, I only knew I didn't die and that was my goal.
I've ran a few more 5Ks now and I've improved my official time a good bit. My best is a 19:10 from my early 40s. Since then I've ran a bit slower and after turning 50 at the start of this year, I figured my personal records were probably behind me. I realize that if I were to hire a coach and abide by some rules I could probably improve my times, but I'm not much of a rule follower (I'll follow mine religiously but I hate other people's rules). I still don't have any matching running clothes, I don't follow a nutrition plan and I completely ignore all common sense running techniques. These are weakness I acknowledge.
I put off training for a distance race because of training plans. I looked some up online and they all called for "rest days". Most "rest days" require you to not run. This was a dealbreaker for me. For most of my 40s the idea of running everyday and running 12-24 miles on some of those days seemed beyond ridiculous so I never thought seriously about a half marathon, much less a full marathon. But then I started to wonder if I could do it. So I took a training plan and added in 5K runs on each "rest day" and I had my own training plan. Was this stupid? Probably. Was it good for my body? Maybe not. But did I do it anyway? Definitely. And what happens when you run your first half marathon and claim it will be your last? You start to wonder if you could do it faster. Then you sign up for your second half marathon.
That brings us to early December. Violet brought home a local running magazine and I saw the ad for The Greenville Half Marathon which was taking place in person on the Swamp Rabbit Trail. This is the trail where I ended up running the virtual Charleston Marathon a year ago. A couple of thoughts jumped up in my mind: 1. I wonder if I could beat my time from my first half marathon. 2. I had been sick for both my first half marathon and my full marathon. What could I do if I was actually healthy?
I signed up. I dusted off my modified training plan and I monitored the amount of cookies I was eating each night. I didn't really change it, I just monitored it. Then I started running. A half marathon plan can be pretty straightforward. The one I used adds in some longer runs during the week but mostly the weekend long runs just start at 2 miles and add a mile each week until the next one scheduled is the 13.1 on race day. Easy-peasy.
What about a nutrition plan? I actually just started eating salads and some vegetables in my 40s. I don't enjoy a lot of greasy, fried foods so I naturally avoid those but I do have a sweet tooth. I'll empty an ice cream carton or a cookie container. Any holiday candy or chocolate gets very nervous around me. One of the reasons I run is so I can eat what I want. Race season tends to be in the winter and early spring months which means training through the big eating holidays so I'm not really watching what I eat, I'm just running extra miles. So I planned to keep eating food. That was my nutrition plan.
Those winter training months also require some extra clothing. I'm a world-class sweater and I get really hot when I run. I'm also lucky enough to run in my own yard for regular runs so I can go out in shorts and a single shirt most mornings during the winter and not worry. I know when I need long sleeves, when I need to add a hat and when I need to add gloves. I've even modified for actual winter weather by adding leggings or even a rain jacket. All of this comes from the "active wear" racks in TJMaxx or Marshalls and believe me when I say that none of it matches. At all. Again, 90% of my runs are at my house in the dark and the deer and skunks do not care what I wear.
While training for the full marathon a year ago, I did listen to some advice about hydration and nutrition during runs. The closest I've ever felt to being a "real" runner was going into a running store and buying some Honey Stinger energy gels. I even had to get some weird tablets to dissolve in a water bottle to stay hydrated longer on crazy long runs. The preparation and planning takes a lot of the fun out of running and I didn't enjoy any of that. I also had to buy a belt to wear that held water bottles and all of the food you have to eat for a marathon. There are people who love the uniform and the stuff and they get a kick out of suiting up. I just like to run.
As I trained for this half marathon, I decided I wasn't going to fool with any of that stuff. I didn't have it for my first half, and I probably didn't need it for this one. There would be water stations along the race course and that was probably good enough. I didn't need any water during the training long runs but I did start to wonder if I should pack just one energy gel in my pocket for the race.
My training runs were pretty uneventful. I didn't push too hard. The training plan I modified was not designed for getting faster, it was actually intended to be a beginner plan. I got up, ran, and then I got a fancy coffee and a pastry. I highly recommend this plan. I did keep an eye on my mile paces and as the miles increased, I consciously tried to keep my pace around 9 minutes per mile. In the back of my head I did have a goal for the race. I wanted to finish in under 2 hours. I didn't actually do the math, but I figured if I trained at 9 minutes per mile I might be able to get under 2 hours on race day. Races offer some adrenaline and competition to move you a little faster and I'd just use that to my advantage. My final long run was 12 miles and I kept my pace under 9 minutes the whole time. I think that would have been a sub 2 hour half marathon pace. I was as ready as I was going to get.
Now I just needed to not get sick.
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